How often do you drink tea?

[Don Boyer]

Are you talking about this? (picture attached below). If so, damn you Americans. This shit is like $4 here in Australia.. for 500ml (17oz).. More expensive than orphan tears, and not even as refreshing!

In those bottles, it's nearly the same price here!  For some bizarre reason, the cans are kept at $0.99 but the bottles, which are usually a bit smaller, go for much more.  It's probably got to do with how the brand got its start.  Think about it - if a drug dealer wants to get you hooked, he'll give you a taste for free, but then will charge full price (or more) when you can't live without it.  They've still got the cans but are shifting more production to the bottles.

Yes but ours are in cans. And Don arizonia tea is horrible for you. There is high fructose corn syrup, so your missing out of benefits of drinking tea. Look for the brand "peace tea" they don't use high fructose corn syrup.

Why else do you think it would sell for $0.99 for a 24-ounce can!? 

I don't drink it much these days anyway, and when I do, it's usually the sugar-free flavors.

I live in the South, so when you say "tea", I think a tall glass full of ice with more sugar than tea in it. THAT is my vice, I drink that with just about every meal. I highly doubt I could survive if I needed to give it up for any reason, or at the very least, my beard might wither away. And that kids, is not how this mountain man rolls.

Funny you mention that Mydnyghte, but it's oh so true. I have family in GA and it's all about the "Sweet Tea". I do enjoy the occasional cup of tea, but I'm more of a coffee person, nothing like that smell 1st thing in the AM.

Sweet tea is becoming popular in more places than just the South these days.  Arizona sells a version of it in New York, and I think McDonald's has it on their menu here now as well.  At a time when diabetes is nearly an epidemic, no less...    Silly me, I've actually tried looking for sugar-free sweet tea!

[John B.]

Peace tea is 99 cents as well and no corn syrup.

[xela]

Why Corn Syrup is fucking terrible (and why AZ tea is garbage): it leaves an after-taste and makes your saliva weird and sticky.

Sugar also kind of does that, but not to the same extent. The best is definitely fake sweeteners, as they leave literally no aftertaste. However, fake sweeteners are terrible with tea except with a few flavor varieties.

Anyone wanting to try a man's tea, try Tejava.

[John B.]

Fake sweeteners are horrible for the body as well. high fructose corn syrup is really high on the glycemic level, and it slows you metabolism.

[Nurul]

Corn syrup in your tea? Whaaaaaaat? All we have is sugar and sweetners lol .. Although, I do use honey sometimes .. Whenever I had a really sore throat, use to get the old lemon n ginger tea treatment - hated that stuff!!

[xela]

Fake sweeteners are horrible for the body as well. high fructose corn syrup is really high on the glycemic level, and it slows you metabolism.

Fake sweeteners can still cause diabetes but have no calories and, contrary to popular belief, are not linked with cancer.

[Don Boyer]

My favorite sweetener would be Truvia or any of the generic variants.  It's the crystalline form of an extract from the leaf of the stevia plant.  It doesn't get more natural and healthy at the same time.

[The Quadfather]

Why have tea, when you can have shitloads of coffee and feel like you're doing things a lot faster.

I drank iced tea once. Unsweetened. Tasted like someone had stirred my water with a dirty finger.

[xela]

Why have tea, when you can have shitloads of coffee and feel like you're doing things a lot faster.

I drank iced tea once. Unsweetened. Tasted like someone had stirred my water with a dirty finger.

Then you had bad tea. Real tea should taste like herbs + grass + coffee all in one delicious drink.

[Rob Wright]

Why have tea, when you can have shitloads of coffee and feel like you're doing things a lot faster.

I drank iced tea once. Unsweetened. Tasted like someone had stirred my water with a dirty finger.

Then you had bad tea. Real tea should taste like herbs + grass + coffee all in one delicious drink.

Maybe it was dirt water.

[sprouts1115]

Mydnyghte - You brought back an old memory of my Aunt Pauline.  We used to visit her in Alabama back in the 80's.  I remember that big clear plastic glass of ice tea.  I swear there was an inch of sugar on the bottom.  So much sugar it could not dissolve.  She was also the aunt when Chucky and I got into trouble She would say, "Go outside and get me a switch.  It better be a good switch cos you don't want me to pick my own"  I can still hear the air cut before it hit my ASS!!!!   

[Don Boyer]

Mydnyghte - You brought back an old memory of my Aunt Pauline.  We used to visit her in Alabama back in the 80's.  I remember that big clear plastic glass of ice tea.  I swear there was an inch of sugar on the bottom.  So much sugar it could not dissolve.  She was also the aunt when Chucky and I got into trouble She would say, "Go outside and get me a switch.  It better be a good switch cos you don't want me to pick my own"  I can still hear the air cut before it hit my ASS!!!!

You had to reach back 25 posts to find something to quote?  Wow... 

So, what kind of switch did you get?  Dimmer?  Rotating or sliding?  Perhaps a three-way?

[sprouts1115]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switch_(corporal_punishment) 

Sorry I'm not like you Don up to date on most threads.  Sometimes I find a thread and there are a number a pages I have to go through.  You don't know what a switch is?  How interesting.  Let me help you.

[Mydnyghte]

Don, it's funny you mention it catching on in other places. I've traveled up north numerous times and out of habit I always ask for sweet tea at restaurants. To which the response is always "Sugar is on the table" However, I did find if you go far enough north, to Canada, sweet tea reemerges. BUT, it is unlike anything I've ever experienced. If I told you I knew what it was sweetened with, it would imply the glass remained on the table long enough for me to ask.

Sparkz, your story made me think of my aunt, who's specialty is making sun tea. And that, you can't beat with a stick. True story.

Speaking of switches, better the ass than the legs.

[Nurul]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when u say switch, r u talking about a switch blade? Lol .. Also, what's sun tea? I had my South African friend bring back some roiboos and that stuff is gooooood

[Don Boyer]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switch_(corporal_punishment) 

Sorry I'm not like you Don up to date on most threads.  Sometimes I find a thread and there are a number a pages I have to go through.  You don't know what a switch is?  How interesting.  Let me help you.

Of course I know what a switch is.  My father was an electrician...

So, keeping up was too hard so you decided to go digging into the older posts instead of reading the newer ones?

Yeah, that's sounds like your idea of logic...

Don, it's funny you mention it catching on in other places. I've traveled up north numerous times and out of habit I always ask for sweet tea at restaurants. To which the response is always "Sugar is on the table" However, I did find if you go far enough north, to Canada, sweet tea reemerges. BUT, it is unlike anything I've ever experienced. If I told you I knew what it was sweetened with, it would imply the glass remained on the table long enough for me to ask.

Sparkz, your story made me think of my aunt, who's specialty is making sun tea. And that, you can't beat with a stick. True story.

Speaking of switches, better the ass than the legs.

Canadians have a notorious sweet tooth.  My mother is from Quebec.  I still remember breakfasts of toast with caramel spread or maple spread, and spruce beer.  But not for breakfast.  Malt vinegar on potato chips.  And lots of really sweet stuff in general.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when u say switch, r u talking about a switch blade? Lol .. Also, what's sun tea? I had my South African friend bring back some roiboos and that stuff is gooooood

Use the link Sprouts1115 provided for the definition of a switch.  It is not a blade, but a branch.

Sun tea - cold tea made by brewing in an ice-filled pitcher left out in bright sunlight.

Rooibos - good stuff.  I have some in my tea collection at home.

[ronyo_faukx]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when u say switch, r u talking about a switch blade? Lol .. Also, what's sun tea? I had my South African friend bring back some roiboos and that stuff is gooooood

I love me some red tea too. I know a couple of South Africans who can't stop going on about how much better it is than black tea. 

Oolong's alright, mainly cos it forms the base of most bubble teas. And I've tried some white tea, and that is better with floral and fruity flavours. Looks like really weak green tea, but tastes OK.

[Don Boyer]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when u say switch, r u talking about a switch blade? Lol .. Also, what's sun tea? I had my South African friend bring back some roiboos and that stuff is gooooood

I love me some red tea too. I know a couple of South Africans who can't stop going on about how much better it is than black tea. 

Oolong's alright, mainly cos it forms the base of most bubble teas. And I've tried some white tea, and that is better with floral and fruity flavours. Looks like really weak green tea, but tastes OK.

White tea IS green tea, made from leaves that haven't fully matured...

[ronyo_faukx]

White tea IS green tea, made from leaves that haven't fully matured...

And with that I have reached a whole new level of 'feeling like an utter ass'. 

[Don Boyer]

White tea IS green tea, made from leaves that haven't fully matured...

And with that I have reached a whole new level of 'feeling like an utter ass'. 

I wouldn't say that, really.  There's a reason why it's called white tea and not really young green tea.  The flavors are lighter, more subtle and there's more antioxidants, or so I've been told.

[nosejam]

I've never enjoyed tea or coffee and I'm very particular about my hot chocolate (Italian style all the way).

Having said that I tried Bubble Tea for the first time on Saturday and I loved it.

[xela]

I've never enjoyed tea or coffee and I'm very particular about my hot chocolate (Italian style all the way).

Having said that I tried Bubble Tea for the first time on Saturday and I loved it.

What's Italian style hot chocolate?

[Nurul]

Ciccolata Calda, it's almost like a pudding. Personally, I prefer spanish hot chocolate, much more creamier.
What brand of tea do they have in America? I'm drinkin PG tips as I type this

[Don Boyer]

Ciccolata Calda, it's almost like a pudding. Personally, I prefer spanish hot chocolate, much more creamier.
What brand of tea do they have in America? I'm drinkin PG tips as I type this

The two most common mass-market household brands would be Lipton and Nestea, in all likelihood.  I never touch the stuff, though - I prefer loose tea from a tea shop.  There's a chain store called "Teavana" that's kind of popular in upscale shopping malls, though they're far from the cheapest.  I know of an online retailer that has a decent selection - I miss her brick-and-mortar store; it was near the old location of my dojo.

If I'm feeling really ambitious and want some very, VERY good green tea among other varieties, there's an Ito En store not too far from my workplace, though I'm rarely in the area when it's open.  Ito En is one of the larger international brands and is based in Japan.  Their bottled cold teas are pretty fine as well - all unsweetened and pure.

If I'm less ambitious, there's a few Japanese supermarkets I can go to and one "pan-Asian" market that's got a really good selection of pretty much anything for the kitchen or the home, except furniture.  If I want furniture, there's a multi-store marketplace in New Jersey that I've been to before with a friend - I think they still have a Kinokuniya bookstore on-site as well.  I keep wanting to stop in and pick up a kotatsu/futon set, and the time of year for having one handy is definitely approaching in this hemisphere.  I keep wondering why no one ever created a Westernized version of a kotatsu...

[nosejam]

Ciccolata Calda, it's almost like a pudding. Personally, I prefer spanish hot chocolate, much more creamier.
What brand of tea do they have in America? I'm drinkin PG tips as I type this

The Spanish are definitely among the better hot chocolates, as a follow up I love some churros and chocolate